My 2012 wish for all of us

Hello Everyone,

Hope all is well with you this holiday season. My 2012 wish, is one I'm taking on myself.

Let 2012 be the year you connect to your true purpose. This truth will bring richness to your life. This richness fills your being with light. This light is full of warmth and love. Share this warm light with your loved ones and friends. How do you allow this light to grow brilliantly? By allowing your self to let go of any doubts, fears, regrets, anger or any energy that blocks you from achieving your inner light.
The richness I speak of is love. Not the romantic love or the soul connection love. It is the love that connects you to humanity. I hope that you see love as being extremely important at this time. The coming year is the perfect time to observe your own mind and actions to ensure that all are aligned with love.
Let love be your foundation
Let us exist as love
Create a chain reaction of love
The New Era of love begins in 2012 and through the years to come.

Love has been supporting me through the holiday season. This time last year I knew my Mother's life span was short. We made a promise to make every day special and every moment count. I wanted to make the best holiday memory for my Mom. Money was tight, but I was creative and inventive. For the whole month of December, I presented my Mother with a gift every day. One evening, I surprised her with the craziest Christmas decorations. I had Christmas lights throughout the whole apartment. Another gift was baking her a variety of cookies. My favorite gift was making her a hat.

It was these actions that remain in my heart. I am full of appreciation for all that she has given me. It is the love that remains with me during this holiday season when I miss her. I am blessed that she is in spirit watching over me.

I have compassion for those who may not have family during this season. This holiday season do not take any thing for granted.


As for the love of raw foods, I am experimenting with fruit, nuts and vegetables to make sauces. I have created a few good sauces and a few I need to reconsider. This Avocado and Tomato sauce I made came out tasty. It was good over a salad and spaghetti squash.

I made enough for three days and the avocado didn't turn that funny brown color.
Here are some guaranteed great tasting sauces from the Alissa Cohen book.

SPICY CASHEW SAUCE

1 cup cashews
2 tablespoons Nama Shoya
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoon agave nectar
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 jalapeno chile, chopped

Put all of th e ingredients and 1/2 cup water in a Vita-Mix. blend until the sauce is creamy. Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

SWEET AND SOUR SAUCE

1 cup Nama Shoyu
1 cup agave nectar
2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Put all the ingredients in a Vita-Mix. Blend until smooth. Use immediately or cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 to 5 days.

RAWMESAN (This sauce can be use in so many ways).

2 cups cashews
2cups pine nuts
4 cups coconut milk
3 large garlic clove
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.


Put all the ingredients in a Vita-Mix. Blend thoroughly, using the tamper to continuously move the sauce. Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.


This seasoning recipe is good when I want to make a mushroom sauce.
MUSHROOM SEASONING

1 teaspoon cardamon pods
1 teaspoon allspice
2tabelspoons mustard seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 tablespoons anise seeds

1 Put all the ingredients in a spice or coffee mill . Grind the spices.
2 transfer the ground spices to a glass jar. Shake until the spices are combined. Store at room temperature.

Enjoy!

red hat - self made from an old sweater
raincoat - London Fog
skirt/scarf- vintage
rain boots- hunter
Pictures taken by Carmen G.

Thank You for Reading
Peace and Light to You.

What will be the outcome ?

Hello Everyone,
In the present moment I am fighting for my succession rights claim. My Mother passed away and I am in the process of fighting for my right to remain in the apartment. I grew up in this apartment and my name is on the lease. The renting office is treating me like dirt. The newly renovated apartments in my complex are valued into the thousands. The apartment I occupy is rent stabilized. I'm doing my best to keep my spirits high and not allow the stress to stray me off my path.

I was in the Wall Street area today and I wanted to talked to a few people who are part of the "Occupy Wall Street Movement." The attitudes were pleasant and peaceful. Everyone I spoke to was willing to talk. The ages were from 17 to 48 years of age. I asked two questions. Here are the responses from the two questions.

" There were many political movements that occurred in our past. The 60's was one of them. Do you see a difference from then and now ?

" no hard acid or free love"

" I don't know anything about the 60's movement"

" Yes , there is some similarity, but it's not the same. The greed for money is affecting all of us globally. "

" This is not a political movement , it is about fighting for the quality of life for all"

" I"m part of generation x. I didn't get the 60's movement. I was mad about the whole outcome. The minorities didn't get the justice they needed and drugs were introduced into the poor neighborhoods"




My Second question : What is the goal of this movement ?


"there are many people here with different views. Some want free healthcare for all, others want to save the planet from pollution, others want a new government that represents humanity............I'm an anarchist, so I have my own belief about things. Basically, we all want to end the Capitalist Greed".

" I really don't know the outcome of the movement"

" We want to live and enjoy life, the way it is meant for human beings to live"

" We are out here protesting everything.......homelessness, high cost of living, racism, children starving. We are against anything that does not value life."

" We want our jobs back"



I came home thirsty and looked through the book " Raw Food for Everyone" by Alissa Cohen for an idea. There is this Green Apple - Ginger Saketini drink. I like to make a toast to the bravery of people who are standing up for what they feel is right without knowing the outcome.

Note : Even though this drink is subtle, I don't touch any form of alcohol. one drink effects me like I had the whole bottle. I made my drink without the Sake. I just placed the Green Apple and Ginger in a blender with a touch of Agave and lemon.

GREEN APPLE - GINGER SAKETINI



1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
6 thin slices Granny Smith apple
5 ounces Sake

Use a muddler or a wooden spoon to muddle or mash the ginger and 3 apples slices in the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Fill with ice and the sake. Cover the shaker and shake to combine. Strain into the martini glass, garnish with the remaining 3 apple slices and serve.
This makes one drink.
Enjoy!

I like to leave you with a quote from a world peace leader Daisaku Ikeda.

" More than objective awareness, we must achieve a state of compassion transcending distinctions between self and others. We need to feel the compassionate energy that beats within the depths of all people's subjective lives, where the individual and the universal are merged."

Thank you for Reading
Peace and Light to You.

Rebuilding

Hello Everyone,
I was walking around lower Manhattan and took some pictures of the new 9/11 site. I am hoping this rebuilding will bring value creating opportunities for our society. I like to see the "Money Making " part of our city, shift towards uplifting humanity.

I found this quote inspiring . It is from an unknown author.

Life contains the capacity,
like flames that reach toward heaven, to
transform suffering and pain into the energy
needed for value-creation, into light that
illuminates darkness. Like the wind traversing
vast spaces unhindered, life has the power to
uproot and overturn all obstacles and
difficulties. Like clear flowing water, it can
wash away all stains and impurities. And
finally, life like the great earth that sustains
vegetation, impartially protects all people with
its compassionate, nurturing force.

Food energy is needed to do my long walks. 1 to 3 miles daily is my goal. For this lower Manhattan walk, I prepared some cookies from fruit and nut combinations I like to eat. My creation of fig and walnut cookies came out chewy. But next time I will dehydrate them longer for the texture to be firmer.
Here is a fun cookie recipe to prepare from the Alissa Cohen "Raw Food for Everyone"

OATMEAL COOKIES

1 3/4 cups oat flakes
1 banana
1/2 cup agave nectar
seeds from 1 vanilla bean
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 cup pecans
1 cup raisins
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1. Combine 1 cup of the oats, the banana, agave, vanilla seeds, and Cinnamon in a food processor. Blend until the ingredients are smooth.
2. Add the pecans and the remaining 1/4 cup oats and pulse-chop until the pecans and remaining oats are coarsely chopped. Add the raisins and pulse-chop again until everything is combined to make a batter.
3. Drop 1/2 cup measures of the batter onto Teflex-lined dehydrator racks. Moisten the palm of your hand with water and press slightly. They should not be perfect circles, and pieces of raisins and nuts will stick out.
4. Dehydrate the cookies 6 hours, remove the racks and turn them over, and peel off the Teflex. Dehydrate for an additional 6 hours. The cookies should be moist but still hold their shape. Store at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Enjoy !




I like being around flowers. They offer great healing energy that brightens up any room. The color combinations of Orange and White flowers are very nice for the fall.
The Orange color of a flower is known to bring about joy, enthusiasm, determination and ambition. Orange increases the oxygen levels to the brain.
The White color of a flower is known for purity, formality, elegance and neutrality. It brings peace.
Colors have a strong psychological and physiological effects on people. Sending a person flowers can stimulate healing. Ever notice how a sick person will smile when flowers are given to them.

vintage denim jacket - Rags a Go Go
purple skirt Webers
black riding boots - John Fluevog

Thank You for Reading
Peace and Light to You.

Spiritual Sunday

Hello Everyone,

I enjoy my Sundays. This time I met friends over bubble tea and Spiritual conversation. What is bubble tea is ? The popular Americanized name is Pearl Tea. You get a gigantic drink of hot or ice tea of your choice or fresh juice mixtures, a huge straw and large tapioca pearls that sit at the bottom. The fun part is sucking the tapioca pearls from the bottom with the huge straw. This drink originated in the Taichung city in Taiwan.
I found a place that served organic non dairy bubble tea and agave syrup.

The topic of our spiritual conversation was "Finding a teaching that makes it possible for us to achieve truth , unconditional love and the most profoundest inner transformation.



My new job is busy. I make sure I prepare amble Raw Food dishes for the week. I made a carrot cake and spinach mushroom quiche. From the Alissa Cohen "Living on Live Food" book.

CARROT CAKE
It takes less than one hour to make, if you prepare the food ahead of time. I decorated the cake with coconut around the edge. Very smooth and satisfying.

cake:
7 carrots
1 cup walnuts
1 cup of dates
3/4 cup of raisins, soaked for a least 1 hour
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Frosting:
3 tables honey
3 tablespoons orange juice
1 cup cashew, soaked

For cake:
1. Blend carrots in a food processor until well ground. Set aside in a large bowl.
2. Blend walnuts until fine, remove from food processor and place in bowl with carrots.
3. place dates in food processor and blend until smooth.
4. Add the cardamon, nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger and blend well.
5. to the mixture of dates and spices in the food processor, and the carrot and walnut mixture.
6. Blend the entire mixture until smooth.
7. Remove from processor and stir in the raisins.
8. Place in a pie plate.

For Frosting:

1. In a blender or vita-Mix add the frosting ingredients and blend until smooth.
2. spread the frosting over the cake.




SPINACH MUSHROOM QUICHE


Crust:
3 medium sized yellow zucchini, chopped(about 3 cups)
2 teaspoons sea salt
1/2 cup or coconut oil/butter
1 cup flax meal (about 3/4 whole seeds, ground)
1 cup soaked almonds (about 1/2 cup before soaking for 8 hours)

1. Blend the zucchini, sea salt and oil until zucchini is smooth.
2 Add the almonds and continue to blend until the entire mixture is smooth. you may need to use a spatula or celery stick to get the mixture to blend.
3. Pour the blended mixture into a bowl and add the flax meal.
4. Shape into 4 pizza shape crusts on dehydrator screens covered with Teflex sheets and continue to dehydrate until the crusts are hard. It may take 8 or more hours altogether.

Filling:
2 zucchini, chopped
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 cup cashews
1/3 cup light miso 1 teaspoon Celtic Sea salt
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon onion powder
3 gloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
pinch of cayenne
1 head of spinach, pulse in a food processor with 1/4 teaspoon sea salt and 1 tablespoon olive oil
10 crimini mushrooms thinly slices and marinated in 1/4 teaspoon Celtic slat and 1 teaspoon lemon juice.
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, soaked until soft, then chopped
10 sundries olives, pitted and chopped
2 tablespoons psyllium husk powder (if you can't find powder, just buy husks and grind in a coffee grinder)

1. place the zucchini and water in a blender and blend until smooth.
2 add the remainder of the ingredients except the spinach, mushroom, olives and tomatoes.
3. blend until creamy. you may meed to use a spatula to celery stick to get the mixture to blend.
4. pulse the spinach in a food processor until it is well mince
5. mix all the prepared ingredients together in a bowl.
6. let the mixture stir for 5 minutes and see how thick it gets. Add more psyllium if necessary to make the mixture thick enough to slice through when it is in the crust
7. Fill the crust and warm the quiches in the dehydrator for 1 hour at 105 degrees, if desired.

ENJOY !







Kale chips can be expensive if you are buying them regularly. I make my own kale chips. The small dinosaur kale texture resemble a crispy chip when dehydrated. This is better and healthier for you. No worries about the 9 to 12 grams of fat shown on the back label of your favorite chip bag. You can create your own flavor. I like to make it sweet by adding agave, salt , coconut, cinnamon and cumin.









I've been wearing my vintage pink cardi and my brown vintage skirt a few times. The brown print blouse is from H&M. The blue tank and black pieces in the first photo are from the American warehouse.

Thank You for reading
Peace and Light to You.

Welcome Back to New York

Hello Every one,

It was the day of the earthquake when I came home to New York from Sweden. At first the pilot said there we will be a delay in landing, then a few seconds later we had clearance. No one had a clue what was going on. I only heard the news when my room mate picked me up from the airport. My past week has been getting re-adjusted to the time zone, the muggy weather, starting a new job and spending Saturday preparing for hurricane Irene.



I was keeping informed about the storm. Sad about the loss of lives. There is much damage along the coast line.
Our Living complex was lucky. No power outages or major damage. Just one tree fell and plenty of branches covered the walkways.








What a nice break to leave the New York City for a while. A family member was getting married and I was part of the wedding. The city of Goteborg, Sweden was very peaceful. Cold and rainy at times. I've been asking myself "why did I return?" I miss the peace.

Here is my opinion of Sweden - It is the perfect place to raise your children but it is not the perfect place for retirement.

I will answer that number one question.............No there is not an abundance of blond blue eyed beauties running carelessly around. Actually it is a very conservative culture. Swedish people are very shy in their behavior. The society is family oriented due to the number of women in power. When I go there, I transform any sign of New York aggression to a soft spoken gentle person who smiles a lot.

Here are some pictures of the wedding location. It was cloudy for a while then the sun came out. This establishment is huge. Two large dinning rooms, a bar, a lounge area, one large patio, two small patios and a outdoor area.






Every Saturday in Sweden is "Goodies Day". This is a huge Swedish tradition. These people pile up on the candy and treats. I'm talking big bags of candy. Then they go home to watch movies or go out to an event eating bags of candy. Sweden has strict standards when it comes to food. For example they will not allow "junk chemicals" to be process in the candy or food. No animal products here.

Yes, I did pick out a candy that was made out of violet flowers and honey. Salted Licorice is the biggest thing and Swedish fish are available in all kinds of shapes, flavors and combinations. They are huge on marshmallows.

This is Ivan, he is a professional rock climber. He searches for new and challenging places to climb. He does not use equipment only his bare hands.

Nothing says happiness than a bag full of candy. Adults are in the candy store more than the kids.


What else do Swedes eat besides Swedish meatballs..... CHEESE , I mean a block of cheese in the economy size. Also, raw salads, Wasa crackers in all varieties, caviar and yogurt. In the USA You have no clue what yogurt taste like until you have had a Swedish style yogurt . The choices of yogurt is overwhelming. I had one yogurt with green tea. There yogurts are very pure. It did not upset my system. The regular yogurts processed in the states will cause my nasal passages to clog up after one spoonful. This is why I avoid them.
What did I eat there ? My family did not have a blender for me to create meals. My menu was salads, raw vegetable Soups, fruits and nuts. I found one health food store that sold a few raw foods. I got a pack of raw crackers. Now that I'm back in New York I can prepare my food again.

My seven year old niece loves making salads. Every night we would invent a new combinations.



I arrived during the time of the Art Culture Festival. The last two weeks in August are dedicated to diverse cultures from around the world.
Here are some pictures of Goteborg.
Enjoy!



Check it out - 7 Eleven and Burger King side by side.

You know I had to go into this store. Come to find out the owners are not from Brooklyn. They are from Africa. They have never been to Brooklyn. I was not allowed to take pictures of the merchandise. Their "stuff " is a throw back from the Run DMC days. Great for nostalgia.

Thank You for Reading
Peace and light to You.